Bitdefender, F-Secure, Kaspersky Rated Top Anti-Virus Suites

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Here's some good news for PC users: If Windows is your operating
system of choice, just about any of the major Internet security
suites will protect you from almost everything malefactors can
throw your way, according to the latest results from the AV-TEST
security institute.

AV-TEST, a security firm based in Madgeburg, Germany,
subjected 28 security suites to a battery of exhaustive tests to
determine which could best protect user PCs. Included in the
running were major providers like Bitdefender, free services like
AVG and the built-in Microsoft Windows Defender.

The first step in testing the suites was to expose them to 400
strains of brand-new, or "zero day," malware. The programs would
have no prior knowledge of these threats, meaning they would have
to rely on their detection algorithms to separate dangerous
software from benign system files.

The second test measured each program's efficacy in detecting and
removing 60,000 known pieces of malware.
Instead of simply having a program scan a machine and erase all
offending files, researchers gave each program a chance to
exercise all of its security protocols to detect malware,
including real-time monitoring.

Finally, AV-TEST measured each program's system demands and
usability. Having a virus detection program that slows your
computer to a crawl, AV-TEST argued, is a virus detection program
hardly worth using. Likewise, not knowing how to access most of a
program's features essentially renders it useless.

In the first test battery, three programs received 100 percent
ratings across the board: Bitdefender, F-Secure and Kaspersky
Lab. Those who use G Data, Symantec, BullGuard, Trend Micro,
Avast, Microworld, AVG or ESET have little to worry about,
though: their ratings range between 97 and 100 for both
real-world detection and the reference tests.

Windows Defender scored considerably less well in the real-world
trial, however: It detected only 79 percent of zero day malware
programs, even though it succeeded in isolating 97 percent of
known threats.

Bitdefender, F-Secure and Kaspersky Lab also tested extremely
well in the practical categories, coming in first, fourth and
second, respectively (Symantec came in third). Results were
decidedly more mixed here, though: Some lightweight programs were
not very intuitive, and some system hogs were as easy-to-use as
software gets.

Once again, Microsoft Windows Defender came in almost at the
bottom of the list, placing 14th out of 15. On a 6-point scale,
AV-TEST gave the program an abysmal 1.0 on Protection, a decent
3.8 in System Load, although it earned a perfect 6.0 in
Usability.

Based on AV-TEST's results (which took six months to fully
perform and analyze),
Microsoft's own software is woefully inadequate for
protecting Windows PCs, but almost any other program — even free
software — should do just fine.